Dathomir

[Lusef Aryan]

A steady blow glow emanates under the white hood, as its occupant is escorted from behind by the two stormtroopers. There's a wariness in their movements, each of the three picking up subtle signs of the battles and trek that came before. Alpha and Beta kept their guard up for more mundane dangers, senses reading in data incoming through their customized helmet's HUDs. As the hoverchair moves on, its occupant stops, making small hand motions to indicate a pause, its head swiveling around as if trying to pick something up, either in the air or some faint smell. Mostly, they follow a set of tracks. Humanoid, they determine for the majority of the fresh ones, but once set of tracks puzzles the troopers.

 

"Tuk'ata," their leader states simply, drawing in looks from the escorts. After a beat, the explanation continues. "Guardhounds the ancient Sith Lords set for their tomb on Korriban, Fearsome, but loyal to their masters. If I had doubts about who was leading this party before, I know for sure now." The response is whispered, coming out in a rasp. The white gloved fingers steeple together, pulling with it a set of tubes that fold in under the cloth robe covering the body. "I do not anticipate a fight," he continues, "though I know my presence may be... alarming... to our dear friends." There's a short mirthless laugh, harsh and dry. "Ahhh, such a fine reunion this will be," the voice continues, a hint of dry amusement entering its tone. The right hand points a trembling finger forward. "Let us pick up the pace. They are coming and I want to make sure we are prepared to greet them properly."

 

The pace increased, but the two troopers hovered proactively behind the chair. No grunts or complaints escaped their lips as they marched though they'd been on foot for a while, now moving at a steady powerwalk. The terrain was rough and uneven, but the repulsorlifts allowed the medical capsule chair to pass through without undo effort, though it would pause for the benefit of its escorts more than any real need of its owner. Eventually, Luciferian-Beta picked up something, calling out sharply. "My Lord! Lifesigns approaching! It's numbers match the group whose tracks we'd encountered earlier." Luciferian-Alpha looked over towards his master, his gaze steady, questioning. He could see the smile on his lord's bloodless lips from under the cowl. The gloved fingers steeple again, its head swiveling once more, as if looking for a proper vantage point.

 

"As I said, Alpha," their leader states dryly. "I do not anticipate a fight. My brethren would not be so... hasty... Not when they know me dead." There's laughter this time, as harsh as before, but there's a sardonic delight to it. The trio make their way up towards a small hilly landmass that offered a few as well as concealment. "That said," he continues softly. "I do not believe in being careless. They are still Sith, and a direct approach to a threat should be anticipated from them."

 

From their vantage point, they could watch the group approach. They waited in silence, the pair of troopers mindful of their orders not to show any hostility, not to even think it. "... for Masters trained in the Force will be alert to threats to their person. They will foresee it and that will ruin some of our surprise," was the explanation. They continue waiting, watching with some surprise of their own as one of their member falls of his mount. There's a spark of lightning, and then a scrambling to aid the fallen. The duo look towards their master, questioningly once more. To act? To get involved? Even to provide aid? What then? Once more a hand is raised, silent save for the clacking of medical tubes.

 

"My dear Lord Quietus," Faust's voice is rasping and soft when it rings out, but amplified by the chair's capabilities, it reaches the group of Sith in the distance, clearly announcing the trio's presence and alerting all kinds of beings and creatures from over a kilometer and a half-distant. There's a normal force signature from the two troopers, but from their leader, nothing, as if he was a void or blank in the force, registering no life signs.

 

"It has been far too long. Is this a bad time?" There's an urbane, but mocking quality to it. The lights on the hoverchair announce its presence as it slowly approaches the group of Sith, openly now, hands resting wearily on the arms of the chair. The two troopers remain behind. They don't have their weapons raised, but look tense, as if ready to fire them at any sign of hostility. "I believe your companions and I need to have a talk," Faust's voice continues on, getting louder as he approaches from the distance, the rasping quality of the voice taking on a warbling quality. "We are seeking out the same parties in this delightful little drama, chasing them for our own ends, and I have it on good authority that your friends have something of mine... a journal I'd left behind posthumously in the Memorial." How that was known was a story indeed, and one item that would be played close to his chest, such as it was. A chuckle erupts from those bloodless lips, pure Faust, before breaking into a rasping cough. "Ahh.... curse the weakness of the flesh. So frail, is it not? Then again, you'd know, wouldn't you? Just here for a talk... I have not the intent, nor the means, to harm you in my current state."

 

How true both those statements were remained to be seen.

[Raia Montar]

A crawling feeling prickled at the back of her mind, stirring her tired mind back towards the point of consciousness. She wanted to remain in the blissful blackness of her subconscious seemingly far away from the events of the past few days. Despite her silent protests, she gradually was pulled unwillingly back to the waking world. A sensation of falling echoed somewhere in her muscle memory and her arms instinctively tightened around the muscular neck of Roe'gall, who responded by lowering himself to the ground so his young charge could steady herself.

 

Finally, she opened her eyes to see Draken at Raynuk's side with a med pack and felt disheartened that her previous attempts to heal him hadn't been enough. She'd only taken a few steps towards Raynuk and the others when another voice pierced the relative quiet of the jungle and sent a chill down her spine and sent her running to Alora and Draken's sides. Outsiders on Dathomir brought disaster, as very much evidenced over the last several hours as she could still smell the smoke and acrid odor of burning flesh carried by the night winds. She felt her stomach twist again, but fought harder against her fear and nausea this time, focusing instead on doing what she could to assist Draken.

 

The fact the man now approaching in the floating chair had referred to Raynuk as Quietus, was very telling and likely meant he was a fellow Sith. There was something familiar about his voice as well, but she couldn't place it despite the recognizable way it seemed to echo within her psyche, almost as a ghost of a memory. The mention of the journal brought things sharply into place as her weary mind finally connected the dots.

 

The voice belonged to the man from her vision of the destroyed Memorial. The man from the shared vision Alora had plucked from the mind of the red-skinned, tentacle-faced man Emily had killed when they'd made their own visit to the Memorial. The man that tried to end everything and had somehow survived. The man whose writings contained the prophecy with the symbol of her tattoo. Suddenly she couldn't help but feel exposed without the fabric of her scarf to hide the crimson ink from view, so she opted to hide behind Raynuk as best she could, helping him into a seated position as she did.

 

Why aren't the dead staying that way? she wondered to herself as she watched the approaching party with more than a little trepidation.

[Raynuk Montar]

In terms of pain and injury, Raynuk was clearly not having a very good day.

 

After being torn from the saddle of his horse by the pain that suddenly lashed him all over his body, his entire world faded to fire for a brief moment, a flash of light and stars ripping across his vision as he hit the dirt hard. It was the smallest of moments, but within that moment came the solid truth of why. Jaina... she's even worse off than I am... The sensation of being shot by a blaster was no stranger to the Sith; the feeling of fire blossuming and then fading to cold as air hit the blood that rushed to fill the new wound. And now Raynuk could feel the ghost of several of such wounds upon his own body as he coughed into the dirt and pushed against it to rise, just as Draken again rushed to his side, the other's senses reaching for a threat that Raynuk knew was not there. He managed to climb to one knee, another cough rattling through him as Alora, with a hint of panic and worry, rightfully questioned what was happening.

 

It was a few deep breaths before Raynuk answered through gritted teeth. "Its not me that's hurt..." he trailed off. Its her... he finished to himself. "I'll be fine, just... caught off-guard is all."

 

He could feel all three of them -- Draken, Alora and Raia -- with seeds of doubt at his words and worry for him fresh in their minds, but he knew he had to keep pushing through. He was about to wrench his body up again to stand on his feet once more when the voice, raspy and soft, yet somehow amplified, reached him. The voice was enough to drive a fresh wedge of surprise and caution into his mind. He hesitated for only a moment before his gaze shot to visually scan for the source. It did not take long for him to spot the two troopers flanking a hoverchair approaching from the direction of a nearby hill. There was quickly a mental war raging across his consciousness as his gaze never left the chair and its hooded occupant, a slight disgusted frown the only outward change. As the chair approached closer, the voice came again, almost mocking him.

 

"It has been far too long. Is this a bad time?"

 

Raynuk had been saving his strength in the moments that it took for the trio of figures to approach, and when this pretender -- for that's surely what it must be right? -- was no more than one hundred feet from him, Raynuk wrenched his body upward again, slipping from the sitting position Raia had helped pull him to, and standing as tall as his injured body would let him.

 

""I believe your companions and I need to have a talk. We are seeking out the same parties in this delightful little drama, chasing them to our own ends, and I have it on good authority that your friends have something of mine... a journal I'd left behind posthumously in the Memorial." the voice rasped before a quite disturbing chuckle parted its lips. "Ahh... curse the weakness of the flesh. So frail, is it not? Then again you'd know, wouldnt you? Just here for a talk. I have not the intent, nor the means, to harm you in my current state."

Raynuk had crossed his arms while the pretender Faust spoke. He listened to every word, looked past each for meaning, and waited for the perverbial shoe to drop. When it was done talking, Raynuk's gaze only narrowed slightly as seconds ticked by, as if thinking and studying what was before him.

 

"Maybe we both should have stayed dead then. What do you say, suicide pact? Right here, right now? We both go back to the other side and stay there for once? Because I know for sure that's where you should have stayed. No? Well if you're sure then...." He paused again. "You came here to talk, then so be it. Clearly you know, or at least presume to know, what my companions and I are doing, so why dont you even the score and tell us why you are here, and what you want with my prey, because last time I checked, you were the cause of all of this, and I am not about to stand by again while you try it again."

There was definitely bad blood behind Raynuk's words. To his companions it might have seemed out of place, but for Raynuk there was a perfectly good reason; One that he had kept fairly close to his chest ever since his own resurrection at the hands of the Cult. It was a reason that Faust himself might even already know. Perhaps it was time to test the pretender. He turned and caught the gaze of Raia, Draken, and Alora each, silently offering a 'I got this. Be cool' look before turning back to the frail man.

 

"You came to find me and my companions for a reason..." he began, then paused and seemingly changed directions. "I know you expected the galaxy and its two shining knights to come and try to stop you... Did you expect to lose? Did you know that I was prepared to, and intending to stand with them against you? To stop you from tearing this reality apart? It should have been me... Not that pitiful whelp of a Massassi. Clearly that little story didnt go as either of us intended. So why come to me, to us? I know you well enough to know this isnt about some journal you left behind."

 

He knew what the man this person claimed to be had been capable in life, perhaps better than most -- one of the bright sides of being a living relic of the Sith such as he was. If this truly was somehow the being known as Vladamir Faust, the frail body it was inhabiting would not be sufficient reason to underestimate him.

 

No, it would only make the man more dangerous.

[Lusef Aryan]

Silence.

 

Luciferian Alpha listened to the exchange, remembering clearly his orders to stand down and let the Master engage the Sith according to the plan they'd laid out. He could feel the tension building below as the Sith Master responded to their lord's taunts, as well as catch the reactions of his companions. They'd been trained by their lord before, elite troopers, though not the best of the best for the taking of Coruscant. Even more than the Shield Collapse, the disaster at Ground Zero had written him in as some legendary monster, out to destroy the Galaxy. Lies. Wasn't it?

 

Alpha felt the silence thicken, only broken once more by his master's wheezing, rasping laugh.

 

"Oh, Raynuk, Raynuk, Raynuk... You know what awaits me on the other side, as well as you. I drank from the Font of Power that day. I became one with the Darkness. It will consume us utterly. The Darkness... It hungers for life, for souls. In its purest, most undiluted form... Oblivion is where the Force itself should fall," Faust's voice snarls, thick with malice. "I foresaw my victory that day! It was mine for the taking! Those two shining knights hadn't turned the tables on me... Even now, I do not know how..." One tube connected hand clutches the hood of the cloak, as if trying to recall a memory. "They paid for it with their lives... their souls would have been consumed in the same vortex that claimed mine." There's a grim, vicious satisfaction in those words that.

 

Alpha looks over, watching Beta's posture as she stares at the exchange, her head shifting. Their lord had tried to destroy the Force, but had he really tried to snuff out their very lives, their souls? He could sense doubt in her. He shook his head, placing a hand on her shoulder, reassuring her. A wracking cough could be heard, then their master resumed speaking.

 

He straightens up, though still the hood covers his face, the blue glow underneath thickening. "And yet here we are, shadows of Legends, back from the dead in a Galaxy that left us behind." Those fingers steeple once more. "The Cult of Morthos... Their end is not quite mine. I have hunted them as well. Their ends, their goals... I approve in the end, but their Master..." His voice drops lower, the words coming out slower. "I have hypothesized who or what it may be. A treacherous parasite, leeching off my work and glory, a mortal foe I would see dead above almost all others." There's once more true venom in Faust's voice. "I haven't the strength, not since the Memorial," The words are slow, bitter.

 

"I offer... an opportunity..." At that point the words smooth out, becoming silken even for Faust's rasping voice. "I have left records of my work. The Cult or Morthos will be sure to follow the trail I've laid out, but if others too were to seek it, they might find items to their advantage, and a means of striking the Cult at their source. I've left one clue on Corellia, sure to draw the Galaxy's attention." Amusement drips in the Faust's voice. "I haven't the means to strike them down, to reclaim my legacy, but there are others who can pick it up. So, seeker of Morthos, I give you an... opportunity. The journal you have was laid out after my failure, and there are others like it. The means of fully recreating my Ritual, of my darkest Alchemies, and of once more holding the Force itself as hostage are going to be laid bare to the Galaxy. A race... and to the victor, goes the spoils, and the Galaxy, and the fate of the Force itself. Who will win. You? Or the Cult?"

 

Faust's hands part and he holds up a disk in his right hand, flat and pointed to the sky. A blue distorted holo image pop ups, showing an amulet, a ferocious beastial face drawn back like a snarling beast with two gems embedded in it. "I've left a map... and a key... trusted to a retainer of a family loyal to me. It's likely moved on to the retainer or his heirs, though only one skilled in the Force can use it." Faust's wheezing laughter continues, and the holo image fades out. "The Cult will have this information soon, if they are not already watching us. After all, as we can attest, the dead travel fast."

 

Beta stiffens in alarm, looking around at that last declaration, immediately bringing up her HUD and scanners. Alpha does the same. They felt a new sense of dread and danger. Outside of the usual suspects before them, they detected no life signs... but with the Cult and the Sith, did that mean anything? They raised their blasters, not at the Sith and his companions, but alert for other dangers.

 

"I've set the race into motion," Faust continues, leaning back in the medical pod, clutching his chest. "Can you win it, Raynuk, you and your darling companions? I'll be gathering my strength in the mean time, and perhaps, when this is said and done, I'll finish what I started, and then," he promises, an unveiled threat in his voice. "We can have that duel you were hoping for, for the mastery of the Darkness and that storybook conclusion you so hoped for."

 

Though Alpha could see Faust's head remained slumped down and bent, concealed under the hood, he could feel the smile in those words.

[Raynuk Montar]

The more Raynuk listened, the harder it was to deny that somehow, against every hope, prayer, wish and certainty, Vladamir Faust was back. A man who's existence, spirit and soul had been utterly shredded with no remorse or second thought. And the man conquered even that. He had almost no time to make peace with that fact, for it was that the great destroyer laid his cards on the table.

 

"I offer... an opportunity..."

 

Raynuk listened again, maintaining his stance and silence as the raspy voice modulated to and fro, the words almost spilling from his mouth as if they were not entirely its own; and that was something to keep note of. But the actions and reactions of the two soldiers did not go unnoticed either. Clearly they were here as some sort of protection for this frail body in the hoverchair, but as Faust spoke, Raynuk picked up on the subtle changes that washed over the soldiers. It was as if even they did not fully understand or comprehend the depths of selfish evil and destruction their charge was capable of. It became clear that Faust did indeed know a great deal about the Cult of Morthos; their intent on finishing what he started chief among that knowledge. But he paid particular attention to what little Faust gave him in respect to 'their Master'. The opportunity that Faust set forth was, if nothing else, interesting. There was no illusion about the fact that Faust was simply seeking to use Raynuk to further his own goals; the man admitted to being too weak to effectively deal with the Cult and it's leaders. Raynuk was simply the tool that would bring Faust his second chance.

 

"I've set the race into motion. Can you win it, Raynuk, you and your darling companions? I'll be gathering my strength in the mean time, and perhaps, when this is said and done, I'll finish what I started, and then, we can have that duel you were hoping for, for the mastery of the Darkness and that storybook conclusion you so hoped for."

 

For a moment, Raynuk simply stared at what he could see of this person's face, which was not as much as he would have liked. Then finally his gaze dropped to the dirt at his feet, which he kicked at absent-mindedly before responding and looking up at the soldiers.

 

"I make no delusions about the fact that to you I am little more than another pawn in your endless game of madness Vladamir. You tempt me with an opportunity to vanquish my foe; a shortcut. The 'quick and easy path' that leads me to the highest reaches of the Cult that formed in the shadow of your death. Yet you seek to manipulate me, to have me destroy them so that you yourself can pick up the pieces of the 'victory' that was 'stolen' from you."

 

Raynuk's gaze fell back upon the frail form of Faust, and slowly and deliberately he walked forward, doing an acceptable job of hiding the stings of pain that jolted through him as he moved, and approached the hoverchair. He paused for half a breath, then bent over, his arms gripping the armrests, and for the first time since their approach, found himself staring into what should have been Faust's eyes, mere inches away. He did not expect to intimidate someone like Faust, but hoped to at least convey the seriousness and intensity with which he was driving forward in this quest.

 

"I trust you less than I trust them with such knowledge and power Vladamir. Dont take me for a fool. As for a storybook conclusion? You should know better than to believe in such things."

 

He stood up again, but as he did so, gave Faust a small, playful smack on the cheek before he brazenly turned his back on Faust and the two soldiers to return to his friends.

 

"Thanks for the info though. I'll be sure to put it to good use. Im sure we'll be seeing each other again sooner or later."

[Lusef Aryan]

Luciferian Alpha listens on intently. The Sith Master approached their lord, rebutting his offer. Alpha had been briefed, only at a high level of their lord's plan to rally the Sith to their cause. He felt an uneasy feeling in his stomach. From the talk, was it true that Faust was going to kill everyone to make himself a god? Destroying the Force was one thing, but that awful rumor seemed more of a reality. Those doubts vanished though as Quietus went right up to his lord's mobile medical capsule. He reached out, seeing Beta raise her blaster, and leveled it down once more. He knew shooting would be suicide.

 

He saw Faust's hood duck lower as Raynuk towered over him, gripping the very arms of the life support chair, concealing his face even more, though Alpha could see that blue glow remained. He then felt his body stiffen, rage shooting through him as the Sith Master struck his master's face- not hard to injure, but enough to insult. It ruffled the cloth and passed right through.

 

Faust looked up again and drew back his hood. It was... not human under there. Not entirely. It was a droid body, mimicking a human's, part of the chair. Where Faust's face should have been was only the blue glow of a holo-feed, a live image of Faust's face with two cameras where the eyes were. The face looked beaten, haggard, scarred, almost the same as his face after the Shield Collapse, burned and beyond hideous. It moved in real time though and was still mistakably Faust's. "Oh, Raynuk," Faust admonishes again, chuckling as Raynuk turns his back. "Did you really think I'd place myself in mortal danger so easily?" Their lord spreads his hands out by proxy. "I've rigged this medical chair to mimic and carry my will forward while my real body is... safe..." Faust laughs. "Though it's capable of defending itself all the same." Faust... or his droid vessel, placed the hood back up and turns around as well, heading back towards its escorts.

 

"Deny me, scream to the fates you're not my pawn, or follow the clues. Either way, my will shall be done." Faust calls out once more. "I'll be watching. Indeed, I'm still doing so as we speak."

 

Alpha stares intently at his lord as he returns to them. He was the perfect image of a stormtrooper, but underneath, his face held a thoughtful expression. Until the hood went down, he didn't suspect. "Well played, my lord," he acknowledged. Beta nodded in approval. They felt like pawns themselves, surprised the serious escort was nothing but a droid, but admiring the canny concealment all the same.

 

"You performed admirably," Faust congratulates them, his voice still wheezy and raspy. "Let us depart. We will keep an eye on our friends here after we're gone. Arrangements were made, it's KiLLeR or be killed..." Faust laughs, then breaks into a fit of coughing, clutching his chest. Underneath the hood, Alpha could see their lord's face twist in pain. "Events are in motion. We have more stops to make."

 

Alpha sits with his lord as Beta fires a single shot into the air. Gamma, piloting the shuttle, swoops in and performs a neat, quick extraction, leaving Raynuk and his motley crew behind, though as Faust promised, not entirely alone. Alpha felt the ship lurch into hyperspace, mind set on their next mission as their lord explained things, though he also wondered, where was his lord's real body?

[Raia Montar]

The flame of Raia's fear only seemed to grow stronger as she watched Raynuk rise and engage with the newcomer. Her hand unconsciously moving to catch his arm and only just missing his robes as he made his way to the being seated in the strange, hovering device. It was Alora that drew the girl to her side and tried to stop her trembling and still the shock that was taking hold in the teen's already over-taxed systems.

 

She didn't understand what was happening. What little had been making sense to her suddenly felt upended the more she heard of the exchange. As the robe fell away to reveal the mechanical monstrosity beneath, a cry of horror rang out from the girl and she sank to the ground. It wasn't until after it's echo had faded that Raia had even realized that it had come from her.

[Raynuk Montar]

Raynuk had found his place among his friends once more as Faust, ever determined to have the last word, blathered on once more about Raynuk denying him, the fates and his will being done. Raynuk almost had to forcibly resist rolling his eyes at the words that came from the hoverchair. Instead, his arms crossed again as he turned back to face the troopers and robo-Faust. He felt no need or desire to further engage the man; Faust had laid his opportunity and desires on the table, and Raynuk had simply avoided giving Faust an answer. He would move forward from this point, just as he had intended. Only now he would have to adapt to this new information that Faust was not only back and plotting once more, but the madman was also keeping an eye on him.

 

This just keeps getting better and better... he thought sourly, watching robo-Faust and his troopers prepare to depart. He watched the shuttle swoop in from above, his arms shifting just slightly to allow his fingers to activate the device on his gauntlet that allowed him to interface with the Ravenhammer. The trio and their shuttle soon departed, an extraction that would have made any military commander proud when considering its speed and efficiency. Raynuk continued to wait until the shuttle had disappeared into the sky before he allowed the fatigue to catch up to him, his entire stance slacking as if the gravity of the planet had just been increased substantially. One hand fell to his still tender side as he turned to face his companions once more, for the first time seeing the looks on their faces. He saw worry, he saw confusion, and he saw terror from them, all feelings that he too was feeling the impact of. His free hand reached out to Raia, who had sought shelter at Alora's side, for he could tell she above all needed reassurances about everything that had continued to happen, leaving the day as a pile of strange and life changing occurrences. He gave her a hug intended for comfort as he began addressing the group as a whole.

 

"To me, this doesnt change what we are doing. We simply now have another avenue of leads to add to our own, and now we know he is keeping tabs on us. But I know this is a potential game changer; Faust is not to be taken lightly, and he is potentially more of a threat than the Cult is. So if any of you.." He turned to look at Raia, "are having second thoughts about following me down this path, this is your chance to get out. I wont hold it against you."

[Raia Montar]

Raia's arms closed reflexively around his waist as he hugged her, holding on to him as though she were anticipating the very ground beneath her feet could give way at any moment causing another cataclysmic shift in her world, for yet another time that day. Her thin frame still shook from the shock of the day's events, but even in that state, she knew she didn't want to leave Raynuk's side. Not after she'd abandoned Emily to face her last vision alone.

 

Her mind couldn't put thought to vocalization so she hoped her actions made her intent clear. She wasn't leaving him again.

[darth shadowlord]

Draken stood up, his eyebrow arched as he heard Faust's voice. It had been a long time since he had heard that voice and while he had worked well with him, he hadn't fully trusted him. This would bear watching. For now though he was content to let Raynuk handle things though he did call his staff to hand upon seeing his two guards bring up their weapons. When Faust had left, he turned to see Raia's reaction had not been a good one.

 

He sighed then knelt down and picked up a handful of ashes then looked over at her with a wink. He beckoned for her to join him beside his horse, he showed her the ashes and then began to concentrate. Slowly Draken began to weave the force through the ashes, changing the very essence of the material. Slowly the ashes began to lose their color and draw out into a vaguely crystalline shape. He reached out with the force and pulled some blood from off of her hand. At her inquisitive look, Draken smiled and continued to manipulate the force. Slowly the droplet of her blood began to sink into the forming crystal changing it from a transparent state to a deepening crimson shade.

 

He reached deeper into the semi-precious stone in his hand and began to mold it to his will. As he worked, the crystal began to take an unnatural shape for a crystal. A small grin crossed his lips and he saw the form that the finished product would take, he poured a bit more power into the crystal, making it so that it would always seem to have its own light in it. Finally he nodded and placed the ruby tree in her hand with a wink. "Just a taste of the possibilities of the Force."

[Raia Montar]

Tentatively Raia moved toward Draken, her eyes flitting nervously back and forth as she watched him change what had been ash just moments before into something clean, pure, and crystalline. She felt the subtle pulls and draw of the Force as he worked, and jumped slightly when he took some of the still-sticky blood from her hand and molded it into the forming crystal. At this point, she couldn't even remember if the blood was hers, Raynuk's, or some combination of the two. It had been that kind of day, apparently. Her mind had already gone far beyond caring at that point.

 

Curiously, she continued to watch Draken work, until he placed the crimson-crystallized tree in her hand, which reflexively closed around it. Numbly she nodded her thanks and returned quietly, almost automatically to Raynuk's side. She didn't want to think about the Force or anything else for a good long while. Her shoulders were hunched, almost as though she were trying to hide within the other Sith Master's formidable shadow, uncertain and unseen least something else leap from the shadows at her again.

[Alora]

Alora was relieved when Raynuk pushed himself to get up though when he told them that it wasn’t him that was hurt, she wasn’t sure what to think as he sure did look like it was. Then when Faust’s voice rang out, the Sith Mistress spun around to see if what she heard was actually him or someone pretending to be. Reaching out with the Force she could only pick up the vital signs of the two guards. Strange… She schooled her expression to cover her surprise when he started talking about the Cult and Faust’s journal, letting Raynuk speak for their group and when Raia hurried towards them to take refuge behind them, Alora rested her hand upon the girls shoulder, giving a comforting squeeze before she turned her attention back to the hoverchair and guards.

 

Her eyes suspiciously narrowed as she looked at the trio before them, watching for any hint of deception when ‘Faust’ spoke of the opportunity. What did he know… if this was truly Faust… His words and taunts certainly sounded like him. She remained silent, just listening as Raynuk answered for them. When he approached the hoverchair, Alora kept her eyes on the guards, alert to any move that either of them might make, though she draped her arm around Raia’s shoulder to prevent her from following Raynuk. She made sure that the young girl would be easily pushed behind herself and Draken so if anything did happen the girl would have a chance to take cover. The tuk’atas were watchful as well and the Sith Mistress noticed that they had shifted protectively closer to the young girl.

 

Knowing the reputation of Faust, it didn’t come as a huge surprise that the being on the hoverchair was not actually him but a droid in his place. It did explain why there was a void there – it wasn’t a living being. As Raynuk moved back towards them, Faust’s words were heard once more. "Deny me, scream to the fates you're not my pawn, or follow the clues. Either way, my will shall be done. I'll be watching. Indeed, I'm still doing so as we speak." She was glad when the trio left.

 

Alora’s concern shifted back to Raia as the girl sank to the ground with a horrified cry. Before she could offer more comfort to the girl, Raynuk had embraced her. Raia looked like she was never going to let him go as she clung to him. The Sith Mistress felt the same emotions as the rest of their group, just wanting to leave this monstrous planet behind them. She stepped closer to Draken, slipping her arm around him and resting her head wearily upon his shoulder until he leaned down to scoop up some ashes, watching as he created a crystal tree for Raia.

 

"To me, this doesn’t change what we are doing. We simply now have another avenue of leads to add to our own, and now we know he is keeping tabs on us. But I know this is a potential game changer; Faust is not to be taken lightly, and he is potentially more of a threat than the Cult is. So if any of you.." He turned to look at Raia, "are having second thoughts about following me down this path, this is your chance to get out. I wont hold it against you."

 

Alora glanced up at Raynuk as he spoke, inclining her head in agreement. “No second thoughts here. I want the cult to pay for holding me prisoner for so long. I’ll see this through.” Catching sight of the black panther that had befriended Draken, the Sith Mistress called her horse back to her with a caress through the Force, wanting to be on their way again. Alora wanted to see how the young cub that she rescued was. Slipping back onto the saddle she waited for the others to remount so they could be on their way.

[Raynuk Montar]

Raynuk waited a few ticks in silence, turning to each of them in turn following his opening for any of them to bow out. But none of them showed signs of wanting out at this point, and for Raynuk that was proof enough that he had surrounded himself with no less than devoted friends. He specifically nodded to Alora as she responded directly her intentions of staying the path. With no other pressing business to be discussed, he turned to return to the horse he had so unceremoniously fallen off of, still feeling the echoes of not only his own injuries, but those that he knew were Jaina's. Together, it was all putting quite the tax on his well being he knew, but pressing matters continued to force him to push all of it to the wayside. He returned to the horse, feeling Raia following closely, her hands still wrapped around the small blood red tree which she was holding, and paused to look at her for a moment.

 

"Come on, I think we've all had enough of this planet." He offered almost neutrally to her before helping her up onto the horse.

 

Roe'gall and Vex'aedr wandered over as he finished getting Raia situated, and he turned his attention to them for a moment, resting a hand on each of them as he appraised them in turn, suddenly finding their presence to be a measure of comfort and confidence. A small smile spread across his face as he gave them each a strong scratch on the head, and then slung himself up to the horse as Draken and Alora, already atop their horses, turned and continued along the path that would lead the group back to the compound where their ships sat waiting for their return. Raynuk spun his horse around and fell behind them with a small trot, with Roe'gall and Vex'aedr flanking Raynuk and Raia on either side.

 

The trip to the canyon had turned out to be much more than any of them had anticipated.

 

===============================================

 

When the group arrived back at the compound many hours later, Raynuk let out an audible sigh of relief. While riding a horse was never quite something someone forgets, it had been a long time for Raynuk and he was honestly beginning to get tired and sore from riding for such a long period of time. Somewhere along the journey, Raia had fallen asleep leaning against his back, and so with their arrival he patted her hand to awaken her before he dismounted from the horse and gave their surroundings a brief scan through a grimace; the ride back to the compound had not been kind or soothing to his injuries, both physically and mentally imparted. Given the way events had thus far gone, he almost was expecting another setback or ambush of some kind. But to his vision and the Force, the compound remained as quiet as it had been when they had first arrived. when Raia had gotten off of the horse as well, Raynuk turned and lead the horse back to where Draken stood, having already dismounted as well, and handed the lead to the other Sith, thanking him again for acquiring the horses in the first place. He turned back to return to where he had left Raia with the tuk'atas when he noticed the ramp to the Ravenhammer lowering, followed almost immediately by the spindly legs of 2-VSH descending the ramp. Raynuk approached his droid, passing Raia and the tuk'atas along the way.

 

<>

 

"Stop." By the time 2V was halfway through his words, Raynuk had already sighed again and was shaking his head, until finally he cut the droid off. "First off, did anything happen here while we were gone? Secondly, did you get the information I wanted?"

 

The droid seemed startled for a moment before its photoreceptors 'blinked' and 2V answered. <>

 

Raynuk nodded, not daring to assume that he might have pulled a move the Faust had not predicted, if not anticipated and prepared for. Still, Raynuk had no intentions of pursuing the mad man, simply keeping tabs on the actions and movements as best as he could. Knowing that the vessel on Dathomir was little more than robotic simulation of Faust -- wherever what remained of him truly was -- meant that it was likely there would be more tools of Faust elsewhere in the galaxy.

 

"Good. Thank you 2V, I will review it when time allows. In the meantime, prep the ship for liftoff. We wont be staying much longer, especially considering someone is bound to come sniffing about that bombardment. Speaking of which, any idea who decided to blast the planet?"

 

<> the droid reported.

 

Of course. Why wouldn't it have been Delta? Raynuk thought to himself, finding it only slightly troubling that he was not surprised by this news in the slightest. "Alright, prep the ship. We'll be aboard shortly." Raynuk said, turning as he heard the others approach.

 

< the droid interjected, sounding almost disappointed as it spotted Roe'gall walking beside Vex'aedr and Raia. <> 2V said, pointing a finger at Vex'aedr, who was currently sniffing at the small tree in Raia's hands, <>

 

Raynuk shot the droid a look that might have made anyone else cower, but 2V simply put his hands up defensively before turning to re-enter the ship. <>

 

Raynuk meanwhile, turned around to Raia. "As before, you are welcome aboard the Ravenhammer. Your room is still yours, still as you left it. Why dont you take the tuk'atas aboard and settle in. I'll be along shortly."

 

Knowing that Vex'aedr would follow Raia without further guidance, Raynuk instead turned to Roe'gall, who had become something of a wildcard with his return to Raynuk's presence at the side of Raia. He reached out to Roe'gall through the Force, finding that the black tuk'ata, who had once stood by Raynuk's side as fiercely as Vex'aedr now did, had grown extremely guarded of the Sith that had created him. Raynuk was surprised to find that the change in the way the tuk'ata felt about him actually stung slightly. But while Roe'gall was guarded, he still accepted Raynuk when the man tried to connect with him mentally, and that was enough.

 

I'm glad you were here old friend... but I know you are here against your own senses and wishes... she made you come here as protection for Raia. You and I were trusted companions once, but time and my absence have dulled the bond we once shared. I will not ask you to go against your instincts and what drives you; I know you're smarter than anyone else gives you credit for. Raia and Vex'aedr are following where I lead, and you are welcome to come as well. You have always had a place at my side. Vex may be your brother, but his place at my side mirrors the place that you have always had. I would relish to have you stand with me once more my friend. Come with us, and you can taste again the enjoyment of the past, and continue your oath to protect Raia.

 

He paused, his gaze connecting with Roe'gall's own eyes solidly.

 

But if you would rather return to your mistress, I will not begrudge that choice. You may remain here, use this place as your den, from which you hunt, survive and thrive. I would send a message to her, informing her of your actions in defense of Raia, and of your location here, safe and secure. The choice is yours, for the path before me, Vex and Raia likely does not cross with hers for a very long time. Either way, you are and always have been a source of pride and comfort in this life, for me, for her, and now for Raia. Never forget your importance.

 

he gave Roe'gall a hearty scratch behind the ears and then pressed on, leaving the tuk'ata to decide for itself which path it would take while he approached Draken and Alora, informing them of what he had learned from 2V regarding Faust and the planet's bombardment, but then fell silent for a few moments before continuing.

 

"Given Faust's interest in us, perhaps it would best serve our purpose if we split up. We know now he's watching us, and that he is working towards his own ends. If we seek out and follow leads independently of each other, perhaps it will allow us to gain momentum and an edge over both him and the cult. Truth be told, I am... intrigued lets say, about the thread Faust dangled before me with regards to Corellia. Perhaps you, Draken, could use some time to study the tomes we have found in more detail and reference them against other texts of our order. And... I think Raia could use a bit of a chance to recover from what has occurred here... and I would be stupid to ignore the benefits of giving my own body time to recover from my injuries."

 

His last few words were but a white lie; for he knew that while time would indeed help his own injuries, he could still feel the pain of Jaina, however far away she was.

[Raia Montar]

Raia had started up the ramp as Raynuk spoke with the statuesque droid, pausing only briefly at the sound of Emily's name. While she seemed slightly more functional than she had been following the meeting with the strange mechanical man who's voice still haunted her deepest nightmares, the girl had remained silent for the duration of the journey back. The mention of her teacher's name brought with it a series of emotions that she just wasn't ready to deal with yet and her semi-fractured mind fluttered to the vision she'd last drawn before shoving her supplies and the image under the locker in her room on the Ravenhammer.

 

Raynuk's voice caught her attention and she nodded, going the rest of the way up the ramp and into the ship, hesitating a moment before climbing the steps to the upper level and lounge. Her last words to Raynuk and his exchange with Emily playing over and over again in her mind. What had happened to cause so much to go so wrong so quickly? Then there was that strange dream she'd shared with the other girl.

 

Vex'aeder nudged her from behind pushing her further into the lounge, apparently eager to get back to his pillows and rest. Taking the hint and shuffling a few more steps toward the couch, she sat down and drew her knees to her chest, not quite wanting to believe that this ship was now effectively her home. Compared to Dathomir, it would feel so dead. Only, now her planet was dying too and she could feel its open and burning wounds calling to her.

 

Biting her lower lip and willing back her tears, she rose and headed for her room not quite expecting the shock of green from her earlier endeavors to push her further into grief over losing her connection to her own family and homeworld. Half in a panic, she fumbled around under the locker and yanked out the paint set, sending her sketch book and a few loose papers (including the forgotten ball that had been her last vision) fluttering about the floor of her quarters.

 

Furiously she plunged her fingers into the paint, not caring what colors she grabbed, frantically smearing the semi-paste smoothly over the surface that had depicted her forest home moments before collapsing to the floor, unable to hold back her tears any longer.

[Alora]

It was a huge relief to get back to the compound. With the area clear the droid opened the doors so they could ride in. Once in the compound Alora dismounted and led her mount into the stall. She quickly removed the saddle and saw that the mare was well fed before she headed back out of the stable. By that time Raynuk had entered and the doors closed. His droid had come down the embarkion ramp and was prattling on.

 

The Sith Mistress turned her attention to the others hearing the droids report about it being Black Sun that had bombarded the planet. She almost laughed out loud at 2V’s reaction to their being two tuk’atas instead of one. "As before, you are welcome aboard the Ravenhammer. Your room is still yours, still as you left it. Why dont you take the tuk'atas aboard and settle in. I'll be along shortly." She watched as Raia headed into Raynuk’s ship and out of sight. Alora was concerned about the girl. She’d gone through a huge ordeal. Draken had filled her in on what had happened when he’d found her and the tuk’atas.

 

"Given Faust's interest in us, perhaps it would best serve our purpose if we split up. We know now he's watching us, and that he is working towards his own ends. If we seek out and follow leads independently of each other, perhaps it will allow us to gain momentum and an edge over both him and the cult. Truth be told, I am... intrigued lets say, about the thread Faust dangled before me with regards to Corellia. Perhaps you, Draken, could use some time to study the tomes we have found in more detail and reference them against other texts of our order. And... I think Raia could use a bit of a chance to recover from what has occurred here... and I would be stupid to ignore the benefits of giving my own body time to recover from my injuries."

“Yes, it’s probably best we split up for a time. Please keep us informed on how Raia is and call if you need us. I’m worried that she might be overwhelmed by what’s happened to her here. Losing her home and her family will take some time getting over…” She knew Raynuk understood as he had helped her get over the loss of her own family so long ago now. Being his apprentice had certainly taken her mind from what had happened and had kept her busy. Turning to Draken she rested a hand upon his arm briefly before she headed to his ship. She boarded, stowed her gear and grabbed a small container from the cooling unit before she headed towards their room. Entering she glanced around, catching sight of the cub in the corner. Reaching out through the Force she touched the feline’s mind, calling the cub to her. Initially it hissed and spat, arching it’s back until she held out her hand palm up, showing a small piece of meat. Its nostril’s flared and the cub slowly moved towards her. It snatched the meat and scampered back to eat it. With it gone the cub looked back at her again, seeing another bit of meat in her palm again. This time she drew the cub closer to her before letting it have the meat. After doing this several times she began to pat the cub, soothing it and gaining it’s trust again. By the time Draken came in, she was sitting on the floor with the cub curled up in her lap.

[darth shadowlord]

"Given Faust's interest in us, perhaps it would best serve our purpose if we split up. We know now he's watching us, and that he is working towards his own ends. If we seek out and follow leads independently of each other, perhaps it will allow us to gain momentum and an edge over both him and the cult. Truth be told, I am... intrigued lets say, about the thread Faust dangled before me with regards to Corellia. Perhaps you, Draken, could use some time to study the tomes we have found in more detail and reference them against other texts of our order. And... I think Raia could use a bit of a chance to recover from what has occurred here... and I would be stupid to ignore the benefits of giving my own body time to recover from my injuries."

Draken nodded slowly. “Indeed, Faust appearing at this time is not a coincidence. Although there is something that doesn’t make sense, Faust was dead or rather obliterated. With the cult viewing him as a failure due to his loss at the monument, why would they try to revive him? In addition, why would he be pursuing them?”

 

He arched his eyebrow as he pondered it as they rode back to the compound. When they got back to the compound, Draken looked around briefly before placing the horse in a stall after removing the saddle and the bridle. With the destruction of Raging river clan, this compound would fall into disuse and eventual destruction unless it was utilized. He stroked his beard for a moment as he looked out at the trees outside of the compound and made a decision.

 

Draken activated his comm link and sent a quick comm back to Serenno, to be acted on as soon as received. With the comm sent, he turned and looked at the panther which had paused at the ramp of the ship and was looking back at him with a rather perplexed look in its eyes. Draken nodded as he reached the panther’s side and rested his hand on its powerful shoulders. It coughed, seeming to imply a question in its cough.

 

He chuckled as he entered the ship and the panther followed him inside after a moment of hesitation and quickly moved to his side. It moved through the ship slowly, looking through every open door then walked into the master bedroom and sprawling at the foot of the bed with a contented growl. Draken shook his head as he took off his cloak and hung it on a nearby hook. The panther rolled over, clearly enjoying the soft blankets and comfortable mattress as Draken began to laugh as he watched the panther make itself comfortable.

 

He turned and left the bedroom and soon was followed by the panther stalking its way behind him silently till they reached the galley. Draken smiled as he looked at the cub in Alora’s lap especially as it looked at him and hissed. The panther though, didn’t react the same way as it growled low for a moment as the cub dove behind Alora’s back.

[Raynuk Montar]

Raynuk had remained silent following his suggestion to Draken and Alora that they split up for a time. He had hoped that both would understand and see the merits of such an action, but knew it was entirely possible that one or the other would rebuke his suggestion. They had come to Dathomir seeking to follow the path that the Cult of Morthos had walked and find answers. But even though the canyon had been cleared, the cultist left behind to command the aspects of undeath being killed, and information having been found, Raynuk could not consider this trip to be a victory.

 

The sudden reemergence of Faust did nothing to improve that feeling, only serving to raise more questions about the end goal of the cult and what was truly going on. His trust had become a precious commodity which for the moment was help exclusively by Raia, Draken, and Alora. He did not trust Faust’s words regarding the cult, but he also did not trust the man to not be working with the cult either. It was the worst kind of double edged sword.

 

Raynuk had remained standing near his ship following his conversation with Draken and Alora, and remained there for a few moments following the two of them boarding Draken’s ship. Raynuk’s gaze floated up to the sky in the distance, where he could still see the edges being tinged by fire and smoke. It was a scene that, due to its similar effect on the sky as a sunset or sunrise, was somewhat beautiful. It was a rare moment of silence and solace between bouts of intensity, and he took more than a few of them before turning with a dim smile and boarding the Ravenhammer.

 

Stepping back into the lounge area on the upper level brought with it only a few dull pangs of the past, but they were already buried by this point, little more than echoes that he recognized as being present. His attention instead went to the doorway that lead to the room Raia had claimed, and then painted, when she first boarded his ship. Roe’gall was standing just outside the open door, whimpering softly. Roe’gall, sensing Raynuk’s presence turned to him with a look that send a sudden bolt of terror and worry through Raynuk. In that fraction of a second, Raynuk’s mind went into overdrive.

 

Raia had come to Dathomir seeking a grasp on belonging, family and stability with her clan. But she had found none of those, and now her clan had been effectively wiped out. The girl had not said much during their trip back to the ship; she had been pretty much depressed if he had to put a name to it. Knowing all this, with the look his pet was giving him, there was only one terrible, fearful, thought that built up in his mind.

 

Had Raia come all this way, back to the Ravenhammer, just to take her own life to end her misery?

 

Raynuk crossed the decking to the doorway almost frantically, trying to prepare himself for the eventuality of a suicide on his watch. He pushed past the black tuk’ata, determined to at least stand tall no matter what he found; to remain an obelisk of darkness without outer remorse or feeling. But as soon as his eyes adjusted to the dark lighting within the room, the rigid posture slacked against his own determination, and he sighed.

 

There Raia was, sitting near the wall of her room as if her legs had given out from under her, crying as hard as he had ever seen someone cry. Heavy sobs rocked her body continuously as rivers of tears fell from her reddened eyes and cheeks, a quiet rocky wail of emotion that was only broken by the sobs. And there behind her sat Vex, whimpering much in the same way Roe’gall had been, all the while gentle nuzzling Raia’s back to no response from the girl. But what struck Raynuk most was that through the tears and sobs, Raia was smearing the walls within reach with paint of various, seemingly random colors. He glanced around the room quickly, and realized that Raia had come back to this room, and dedicated herself to covering up the jungle scene that had resided on the walls. Her entire painting kit lay scattered around the room, the paint jars tipped empty below the large smears of reds, yellows, blues and greens that covered her walls now. He turned back to Raia, who had noticed his presence in the doorway. Her sobs had subsided, and now she was trying to put on a brave face, wiping the tears from her eyes, but trying not to look at him. Her hands and arms were covered in the different colors of paint, globs of it had made their way into her now wild hair, and smudges of paint resided on her face, likely due to the poor girl attempting to wipe away the tears. Even Vex had somehow managed to get paint on him, the colors almost comically popping when set against the tuk’ata’s white fur.

 

He made a step forward to move to her – even though he had no plan of how to comfort her in the moment – but he stopped as he felt something crunch under his boot. Looking down, he noticed the various brushes that had been scattered and abandoned at his feet, and the balled-up piece of heavy paper that he had stepped on. He paused, stooping down to pick it up off the ground. He recognized it to be the same type of paper that Raia often drew on, including many of her visions. He held it in his hand and just looked at the paper ball before he glanced at her again, just in time to see her eyes dart away.

 

He finished crossing the room towards her silently, and then crouched down next to her, even as she continued to avoid looking at him. Holding out the wadded piece of paper towards her, he finally spoke, his voice bordering on kindness.

 

“I know you are overwhelmed by the weight of all of this mazais,” he began, using the nickname he had given her for the first time since his split with Emily, “But you are not alone in this galaxy as long as you do not wish to be. You may not believe me, but this pain you feel shall pass. Just as time continues to march on endlessly, so shall you continue to move forward, and you will be a stronger person because of it.”

 

He paused, and then gently placed the crumpled ball of paper down in front of her. “I’m not going to ask you what is on this paper, or look at it. What happens with it is up to you, but I suspect it was not discarded carelessly. If you want to talk about it, I will listen. If you dont, this will be the last I speak of it. In the meantime…”

 

A small smile cracked his face as he turned and looked at Vex, who had a streak of red pant across his snout, “I think a shower and a hot meal would make you feel a lot better. Unless you want to keep all this paint in your hair.”

 

He finished before he reached for a glob of paint in Raia’s hair and tossing it aside. He didn’t expect Raia to answer or respond to him in that moment, so he didn’t wait for her to do so. Instead he simply stood back up, gave Vex a pat on the head and turned to leave the room.

 

“Come find me in the cockpit when you’re ready for that meal, and I’ll make something for us.” His voice came as he exited her room.

 

A few moments later Raynuk had made his way to the bridge, where 2-VSH was sitting, finishing up the preflight checks. Raynuk plopped down in the pilot’s chair, feeling another wave of exhaustion and pain surge through him with a wince. A few moments of silent contemplation later, he turned to 2V.

 

“You said I had a comm message?”

 

<> the droid responded without diverting from its task.

 

Raynuk nodded and turned to the comm panel, the slightest twinge of anxiousness fluttering in his stomach. He had no idea what to expect with regards to Emily’s message, and decided to put listening to it off, even if for a few moments, and instead cued up the second message.

 

He did not, by any means, expect to hear an excited Hutt voice that he instantly recognized as belonging to Sheog. It was a strange thing, but hearing how excited the Hutt sounded brought a bit of mirth to Raynuk, which turned into outright laughter once he viewed the attached picture. Once the laughter had subsided, he keyed the comm to respond.

 

Raynuk sent the comm and sat back for a moment. He had elected to speak of his encounter with the robo-Faust to Sheog despite his own reservations. Between not fully believing it himself, and the potential likelihood of Faust being able to intercept his transmissions, it was a risk to speak of it. But even in the face of the risks, he somehow knew Sheog could be trusted; the Hutt was smart, but also just dumb enough that no one in their right mind would use him as a part of a grand scheme of galactic supremacy.

 

Sitting forward again, Raynuk took a breath and then keyed the comm from Emily. He listened to the entire message through once, his gaze cast out the viewport before him to the compound outside. When it finished playing, Raynuk didn’t move or react for almost a full minute, until his eyes darted back to the panel and he keyed the message to play again. After the second playthrough, Raynuk blinked and turned from the comm panel. After the first listening, he had thought about responding to Emily, but truly did not know what to say in the wake of her message to him. He still cared for her of course, and he likely would continue to do so for many years if his track record was anything to go on. But she had forced a decision on him, here on this very ship, and he had followed not his heart, but what his mind and his gut told him. Against such a threat like the Cult of Morthos, he couldn’t allow himself to get caught up and blinded by what his heart desired; he had the fate of the whole galaxy to consider. But despite his rational that it had been her actions and ultimatum that had lead here, he knew that he had hurt her deeply with his decision. It truly had been a lose-lose situation. Perhaps one day down the road, after the cult had been dealt with and Faust returned to the depths of hell that the man had crawled from, he could fully reconcile with Emily.

 

2V’s voice cut into his thoughts, and Raynuk turned to find that the droid was looking at him expectantly.

 

<>

 

Raynuk could practically feel the tone in 2V’s robotic voice, and allowed it to bring a smirk to his face. “Alright 2V, sure. Go ahead. When we clear the planet, set a course for Corellia. We have a lead to follow. In the meantime, let me see the report you compiled on that shuttle.”

 

2V issued an acknowledgement and passed the datapad containing the report to Raynuk, who took it before sending a short message of “See you soon, stay vigilant” to Draken and Alora. Then he settled in to read the report until whenever Raia came looking for him.

 

Just as he had asked, 2V had tracked the delta-class shuttle on its outbound flight from Dathomir. 2V had then placed that departure angle in the middle of a double ninety-degree cone stretching all the way to the other side of the galaxy, which resulted in a large list of potential planets. But once he had further refined that list to actual hyperspace lanes and avoiding collisions with planets, black holes, nebulas, and stars, had whittled the list down to only a handful of potential locations; Taris, Gromas, Myrkr, Kuat, Corellia, Talus, and Nubia.

 

Right off the bat, Corellia and Myrkr jumped out at him. Corellia was the place Faust had specifically named for Raynuk to investigate for signs of the cult, which both lead it credibility and made Raynuk question it as the target location. He was going there either way, but doubted that Faust would give Raynuk the name of the planet from which the spider was weaving his web. Myrkr on the other hand, was famously the planet from which ysalamiri were harvested, and that was certainly enough reason for Faust to go there; especially if he was planning on meeting with resistance from the Sith or Jedi.

 

Talus and Nubia were in the same system as Corellia as well however, and a master manipulator like Faust just might be egotistical enough to set himself on one of those two planets and watch Raynuk chase the rabbit on Corellia. Kuat was far too public and well known, not to mention solidly within the grasp of the Imperial Remnant for a single delta-class shuttle to mount any sort of potential takeover. Only Gromas remained, and while the gas giant itself was utterly without remark or worth, it’s 16th moon had been of some use to the galaxy in years past, as a bountiful source of phrikite, which was just as useful when combating Force users as a ysalamari.

 

Which meant that Raynuk could not confidently discern where the shuttle had gone to following its departure from Dathomir. For now, all he could do was file the information away, until he had more to compare it to. Frustrated slightly, he threw the datapad onto the console in front of him.

 

He wasn’t about to let a hurdle like this stop him from tracking down his enemies.

[Raia Montar]

Raia watched him go and didn't immediately move beyond extending her hands toward both tuk’atas. Vex’aedr nuzzled her for a minute before Roe’gall muscled him aside, giving her a small whuff of displeasure that only earned him a hug from the still-sniffing girl.

 

He brought her to her feet as he pulled back, Vex tucking his own enormous head under her arm to keep her there when she released his brother. “Don't worry,” she promised them in quiet Dathomiri. “Master Raynuk is right. I have you guys with me now. I'm not alone.” The words still sounded a bit hollow in the wake of the events of the last two cycles, but, maybe if she said them out loud enough, it would make them carry real weight.

 

She took a deep breath before emerging from her bunk to the empty lounge and relatively quiet ship, the lack of the near constant song of the Dathomiri jungle coming as something of an unexpected relief to the teenage girl. Vex and Roe kept close to her, apparently keeping to their respective guardianship duties.

 

It took her a moment to remember how to set up the shower, but once she got the water running it wasn't hard to adjust it to a temperature that was just below scalding. She hesitated as she reached for the hem of her tunic, catching a glimpse of herself in the mirror, looking every bit like the wild witch she'd been.

 

Biting her lip she turned away from the mirror, she ran her hands under the water long enough to clean them before unwrapping the plastic film that covered the clean towels. After reusing the bag to hold her ruined clothes, she threw one over the reflective surface, not really wanting to see herself in her current state. That Raia was dead and had likely been that way since she first left Dathomir two years ago. She just hadn't wanted to admit it at the time or in the years since.

 

The water’s heat did wonders to ease the ache in her muscles and heart. She didn't want to think about Dathomir anymore; she couldn't without tearing open the wounds afresh. She tried not to think at all, and when that failed, she cried some more and watched the dirt, blood, and paint wash away from her skin, revealing the rosy flesh that had been hidden under all of the grit and grime.

 

She didn't know how long she'd been in the refresher, but it must have been long enough to worry Vex or Roe because she could hear them pawing at the door. “I'm still alright,” she called, getting to her feet and washing her hair with the available shampoo. “You're likely next Vex unless you like having a red snout.” There was no mirth in her voice, just mild resignation to the changes she now faced.

 

Turning off the water, she stepped out of the shower unit and took down the bath sheet from the mirror wrapping it around her for warmth as she dared to look at herself in the reflective surface. Ugly purple bruises from her bonds and various scrapes and minor cuts from the flying debris of the storm she'd created stared back at her, but that isn't what caused her blood to chill.

 

The deep crimson and new navy of the tattoo seemed to stare back at her mockingly among the scrapes and bruises as the design had crept outward from where it had started as the medallion shape on her breastbone. How stupidly naive had she been to think that there was any chance she’d have been able to keep the mark hidden from her kinswomen for long? Especially when it seemed to grow with each passing day, or so it had seemed as of late. Clutching the soft fabric of the towel around her, she took a moment to look at the full extent of it as it wove its way across her thin shoulders and down each of her arms, ending about halfway down her forearms.

 

Anger flared within her heart once more and Furion for cursing her with this stupid thing, still not knowing what his purpose or drive had been. The more she thought about it, the more she wondered if he’d planned to make her his own apprentice ever since she set foot on board his ship. She still felt like he’d stored her on the station like so many relics that brought him great power or knowledge. Had she just been a thing to him? A pawn in this game so many of the galaxy seemed to play with one another?

 

She decided she’d ask Raynuk about it once she got dressed. There was a lot she felt she needed to say to him, to apologize for, but all of those things brought the pain of loss to the forefront of her heart and she wasn’t quite ready.

 

Still, he hadn’t abandoned her, she reminded herself as she stole back to her room. Not even after she said those hurtful things to him. He’d sent Vex’aedr after her in the jungle despite being in a pitched battle of his own if the state she’d found him in had been any indication. Even Draken had come for her. Again, she firmly reminded herself, not wanting to lose the truth Mitral had twisted to the elder woman’s benefit for so long. Alora had also been there to support her as she healed Raynuk in the canyon. None of them were there solely because of Emily being my teacher.

 

Raia winced slightly at the state of her room following her emotional outburst and began to at least pick up the scattered supplies. She wasn’t sorry she’d done what she could to cover the Dathomiri forest that had decorated the gray walls. The smears, streaks, and coloring almost made the jungle look as though it were alight, granted the fires seemed to run in varying shades of nearly every hue or just a muddy brown. To her, it served as a reminder of the cost of clinging too tightly to the past.

 

It didn’t mean she wanted to spend much time in her room, so she quickly grabbed the first thing she could find - a black thin-strapped tank, a matching shade of loose, knit pants, and a soft, cream colored tunic made out of a heavier knit fabric with a straight line neck and long sleeves that covered the tattoo and the worst of the bruises almost completely.

 

Grabbing the towel again, she squeezed the excess water from her hair before leaving her room in search of Raynuk. As promised, he was sitting in the cockpit with 2V.

 

“I’m sorry...for what I said before…” she began quietly, her voice not quite timid, but still indicating the smallest doubt that things would be okay between them. “I was angry and said some things I shouldn’t have. I don’t care if you call me ‘Mazais’.” She paused as her stomach grumbled. “Do you think you could make what we had on Coruscant? If...it’s not too much trouble…”

[Alora]

Hearing Draken come in, Alora shifted her gaze to him as the cub hissed, causing her to shake her head with a smile at it’s antics. When the panther following him growled she raised an eyebrow as her cub scampered around behind her to hide. She eyed the fully grown panther, wondering if the growl was just intended to show the cub who the boss was or if it was intended for her as well. Rising gracefully to her feet she ignored the panther and slipped her arms around her fiancé in a warm embrace and kissed him. Once their lips parted she murmured, “Lets leave this rock behind.”

 

Making their way to the cockpit the two Sith readied the ship for departure. Once all the preflight checks were done, The Grand Duke lifted off soon after the Ravenhammer did and followed suit, leaving the atmosphere of Dathomir behind them. Draken programmed the Navi computer and sent the ship streaking into hyperspace.

[Arleigh Burke]

Wally where the kriff are you?

 

Arleigh reached out with her mind but still felt nothing. The planet below that used to team so heavily with life was still several months later, covered in raging forest fires and the wildlife still on the run. Their terror and the terror of the humanity still stuck on the surface darkened the force with a pitch like sense. She shook her head against the feeling and shut herself back down, her warrior braids falling in heaps across her shoulders.

 

She was back, nearly a decade later, aboard the medical ship Starlit Macross sent by the survivors foundation, and currently in orbit over the dark smoke filled planet. A medical call had gone out to assist the planet, and Burke had taken the opportunity. She was now dressed smartly in the white and red uniform of a nurse for which she had the proper training, and was on break from a 12 hour shift in the trauma ward.

 

Hundreds of innocents were waiting in the triage, and multiple thousands confirmed dead just from the initial drone mapping of the burned area. It would be a long few years before they could even turn the tide, with no galactic help, they were a long way from doing anything and the firestorms below continued to grow.

[Roene Givrah]

Arcturus kept the light freighter at a steady pace as it pulled into the Quelii Sector. The middle-aged Jedi Knight had been performing flight checks with his Padawan when he was asked, quite politely, to give someone passage to this force forsaken rock. He’d been persistent with his objections, but after he heard about what had happened, and after he saw the flaming planet enter the massive viewport of his cockpit, his heart sank deep into the depths of his stomach. His Padawan – Russ ‘Rusty’ Falfax, a shy scrub of a boy from Corellia – was gawking in the co-pilot’s chair while his junkpile of a droid meandered about the cockpit.

 

“Close your jaw, Rusty. We’re Jedi, we don’t scare.” Arcturus said, closing his own jaw hard and setting his features into hard lines.

 

Russ’ expression calmed slightly but remained edgy. The rattling Padawan looked to Arcturus with incredulity. “We’re leaving him here Master? But why? Aren’t there any other planets we could drop him off at? Planets that don’t look like they’re on fire from orbit?!”

 

Arcturus shook his head as if a heavy weight were affixed to the base of his skull. “No. He asked to come here, Russ. He said something about a mission to save the planet. What kind of Jedi would I have been to turn him down? You see, Russ, sometimes in life you gotta grab life by its meaty haunches and just plow right in. Life isn’t waiting around for you to take charge. You have to know what you want and take it before it’s gone. I mean, respect life’s values and such, but don’t be afraid to charge headfirst into life’s meaty craw. Because nothing ‘good’ ever happens in a comfort zone, and experience is the spice of life, my dear Padawan.”

 

“Yes… But here?!” Russ replied without skipping a beat.

 

Arcturus removed one of his gloved hands from the steering apparatus and rubbed his thumb and forefinger across the bridge of his nose, frowning. He offered a sigh to his Padawan before taking the freighter into orbit and entering Dathomir’s cloudy atmosphere.

 

It would be choppy, that was sure, but they were going to help him as best they could. It was the least they could do.

 

__________________

 

 

Roene was lucky to find a pilot at such short notice and he was lucky to find someone that accepted he was on a sojourn to Dathomir to help the ecosystem, the planet, and the remaining survivors. But, he knew he was imposing. He’d offered to pay the captain, but the captain adamantly refused compensation. He said something about, ‘Jedi don’t need money. Our cause is all the compensation we need,’ or something. The way he said it suggested a righteousness that was foreign to Roene, but the Cerean admitted that the younger man had a great deal of fire in his burning blue eyes.

 

What Roene found when they arrived, however, was far more devastating than what he’d been led to believe. He’d been told that the planet was afflicted by the after-effects of a devastating bio-weapon. But, as the ship slipped out of hyperspace, millions of painful needles pounded against the Cerean’s coned skull. Red hot pain and misery streamed through the space between the ship and the planet’s surface. And, as they neared, the pain multiplied on a scale that Roene couldn’t even imagine. Visions of fire, desolation, and fear swarmed his mind and he fought to keep his thoughts above water.

 

The river ran rapidly by his feet, threatening to overtake him.

 

But Roene sat, cross-legged, on the edge of his bed. Nature’s fury glowed dimly in the low light of the passenger cabin he occupied, and the splinter of the worshyr tree Rwookrrorro similarly resonated as it sat across the Cerean’s lap. The Naturalist’s mind was a whir of activity. Slowly, as he breathed, Roene made his way to his feet, gripping the walking stick firmly in the living wood of his left hand. Wood creaked against wood and Roene’s thoughts milled around like the feverish winds of a hurricane. But his presence through the force sang outward like a verdant star. Even as the ship landed, the light of his mind and his spirit were singing. The ballad of the planet was in its final score and the counterpoint of Roene’s gentle waltz brought a lighter touch to an otherwise cacophonous dirge.

 

His steps floated through the corridor of the light freighter. Arcturus almost didn’t feel him coming but greeted him with a nod when he approached. “I hope you know what you’re doing. They’re burning out there. Do you need assistance?” Arcturus asked, his brows knitting into what the Cerean assumed was a concerned expression.

 

Roene’s brows didn’t move. His face was expressionless. But the edges of his face twitched ever so slightly. He looked to Arcturus and let a slight declination of his mouth betray the emotions he held so close to his chest. “I hope I do too Arcturus. If you think you and Russ can help the people. Then follow and do what you must. But I will not ask you to accompany me. I came with every intention of working alone. And I will do my best to help heal. I cannot put anyone else in harm’s way.”

 

Arcturus smiled at Roene’s last comment. “You can’t put anyone in harm’s way if we do it ourselves. We’re Jedi, it’s an occupational hazard.”

 

The Cerean nodded, a slight wan accent lighting his face as he bowed to the grass and stepped onto the planet’s surface. Beads of light glistened on the Cerean’s cheek as he held the vision of desolation in the breadth of his mind’s eye. Char and ash flew into the wisps of hair on his chin and tickled the flesh of his cheek.

[Arleigh Burke]

Arleigh Darksong adjusted her white lab uniform and made sure the sporting blaster was strapped to her waist before she exited the shuttle. The biting smell of smoke was the first thing that nearly floored her about the surface, the complete destruction was very much worse groundside as compared from orbit. She bit back a surge of bile. Her homeworld was in ruins and no initial sign of Wally this would be a not so great ground mission, but as part of the Foundation’s medical relief efforts, her first priority was the camp of refugees a kilometer out. She stretched out with her senses as she walked towards the next shuttle that had landed, she brushed by a cone headed Cerean and stopped dead in her tracks. The familiar soothing presence that she had felt in the force was right there, in the cone headed man.

 

She gawked for a second, then brushed her warrior braids back and extended her hand in its white medical glove. “You are a Jedi Knight right? Im Arleigh, a contractor for the Foundation, on medical mission, what are you doing here master Jedi? The Sith have long departed without your intervention to stop them.”

 

And they burned my world old man while your council sat in silence. She thought bitterly at the man, while they were whipped by the incessant wind from the north, carried large embers from several kilometers away. The smell of death and cooking meat was heavy on the air.

[Roene Givrah]

The dying gasp of a vibrant star bit the folds of weather-beaten skin at Roene’s cheeks. Dried bits of death clung to his robes and the scent of poison filled the air. He could scarce believe the totality of it. Streaks of luminous regret peeled from the side of his stolid expression and fell to the ground. The visibility of which, was scarcely noticeable in the cloud of desolation that lingered on the ground, stopping mere inches from the top of his cone head.

 

He coughed and held up his right hand, projecting a field to purify the air. And, as he walked, the grass beneath his feet seemed to perk up and regain some of its verdant hues. Even though, the acres of land that surrounded him, remained as pitch and black as the farthest depths of space.

 

The Cerean gazed, his pale blue eyes wide and his mind opening to the great vastness of sensation before him. Like a leviathan, it called for him, swaths of pain, misery, fear, anger, and suffering mingled together like gigantic brambles, waiting to be cut.

 

Just as he mustered the energy to move, Roene’s eye caught the approach of a young woman robed in white. A medical professional? Here?

 

He accepted the offered hand and bowed appropriately, allowing her space and time to speak. Yet, in reaction to her words, Roene hung his head ever-so-slightly and looked impassively at the young woman. “Your words remind me of a Padawan I once knew. I feel there is truth in your feelings. However, you make assumptions; two, to be precise. One, this destruction was not caused by the Sith. Or, if it was, they employed a slew of mundane weaponry. The taint of dark side energy does not corrupt the ground. The smell and burn of artillery waste are strong. Two had I known about this travesty sooner, I would have attended to it with haste. Much of the planet is dying and needs assistance. I am here to give what aid I can.”

 

The Cerean tightened the grip of his left hand on the shard of the worshyr tree. The tip of the long walking stick glowed with a bright green light and briefly came to life. The light hesitated briefly at the top of the shaft, surged through the veins of the wood and then worked its way down into the earth, exhuming the dead grass and releasing fresh seed to the wearied soil.

 

“My name is Jedi Knight Kro’Roene Givrah and I am here to bring peace to this dying world.”

[Arleigh Burke]

A little prick of anger shot up her spine at the man’s intonation towards her misjudgements. She resisted the urge to roll her eyes in a dramatic fashion that she had exhibited quite often in her youth and instead extended her white gloved hand. She reached out with the force to sense his intentions and only felt the soothing call of the light. She shrugged as she did so, pulling her other hand out of her utility bag and marveled at the power of the force the man exhibited through his walking stick.

 

“Impressive master Jedi but these fires have been raging for months and the air and soul of my homeworld reeks of the darkside. You were right however, it was the Black Sun according to some of the survivors. For what reason I do not know. I never encountered them when I was with Starlisk.”

 

She looked across the scorched mountaintops, where fires had burned unattested through thick brush and ferns. Aided by the unrelenting winds. She breathed in, the cerean was right, the scent of turbolaser ozone discharge was still wafting between the acrid stench of burned flesh. She let a sigh escape her lungs and turned back to the Jedi.

 

“Then I welcome you Roene, and I wish to join you if you will have me. I grew up here and can aide you as needed.”

[Roene Givrah]

“I am terribly sorry that you must return under terrible circumstances then,” Roene said, catching the tail end of the young woman’s speech as he carried onward, walking with purpose toward the nearest tree-line, projecting an aura of renewed health with him as he went, and sweating profusely on the bulk of his coned pate.

 

“As you have surmised, we have very little time. The Dark Side influence is merely an after effect of the larger problem. If we can stop the planet from dying and help it get back to some semblance of balance, it will help itself and move back toward its own equilibrium. The Dark Side that has infected this planet lives within the minds and hearts of the flora and fauna that anguish under the embittered claws of fiery destruction. We must find a way to res-”

 

Roene’s thought was interrupted by a sharp cry in the force. Stabbing pain surged into the area right above his bushy brow. The Cerean’s confidence wilted slightly, anchoring itself in the stability of his feet on the ground. The atmospheric shield, keeping his breathing free of toxin, which he extended to encapsulate Arleigh, flickered briefly, letting in a lung full of toxin and smog. Roene coughed, his chest pounding hard.

 

“This way!” Roene bleated hoarsely before peeling out and running rapidly across the hills. With little energy to sustain his muscles, he drew on what reserves he had to draw himself forward, pushing further and further with the energy of his body. Each taxation renewed the growing weariness in his body and added to the sheen of exertion that hung on his body like a slimy gossamer.

 

When the Cerean arrived, he had to take a few extra breaths before padding down the small hillock he stopped at. The hillock sloped gently into a wide-open glade that was heavily scorched. The glade was cut through the center by a large river. And, next to the river, were two fully-grown rancor and one rancor pup. One of the fully-grown rancor was on the ground, growling with discomfort. The pup was in a very similar way. The second fully grown rancor eyed Roene and Arleigh warily, watching as they approached.

 

Roene projected his thoughts to the Rancor through the force, speaking in measured growls and bass intonations. Outside, to Arleigh, it would look like Roene hadn’t moved from the base of the hillock and was standing to watch as the rancors were settling on the side of the river. But inside of Roene’s mind, he was having a heated debate.

 

We mean you no harm. We are here to help.

 

HELP?! HELP?! MEN CAME, KILLED MY DEN MATE AND OTHER TWO CHILDREN. WHAT HELP?!

 

Roene’s face contorted, straining against the exertion of nerves from the rancor. The hale rancor looked at the Cerean and Arleigh and made to come forward but stopped just short of the base of the hill, looking deeply into Arleigh’s eyes.

[Arleigh Burke]

She nodded, walking after the tall headed man and feeling like she had a few years before, when she had walked beside Onderin on Coruscant and Dantooine. Be mindful and watch what he does, perhaps you can pick something up. She reached out with the force and listened as they trudged through the ashes of her planet, sometimes their boots would get mired in the remains of ash choked bogs, but mostly it was dry, hot, burned ground. Where once there had been lush ferns and undergrowth, now there was dirt, and still burning root clusters. The fire, though moving swiftly had left its stain on the earth.

 

She placed a rebreather over her face and gasped in air before following the Cerean into a sprint up the hillock and as she ran she felt a familiar presence…

 

Wally.

 

She crested the burned hill and those beady eyes looked wounded back at her. He was so sad, wounded by the fall of his mate, grown with pups. Her heart lept into her throat as she stopped herself from breaking into a sprint at the creature, mindful that they would likely strike, friend or no if they were perceived a threat.

 

She pushed past the cerean and walked towards the Rancor, she pulled off her mask and stepped out of the Jedi’s bubble of protection. The wind whipped at her coat and hair but revealed her face in full, She knelt at the feet of Wally and reached up to pat his flank, she pulled a small wooden doll from her pocket and held it up. A totem that had once bound them so many years before.

 

“I’m here Wally, I'm here to help, we both are.”

[Roene Givrah]

Roene stopped, looking at the Rancor and his recent acquaintance with curious eyes. But the unpleasant growling from the rancor’s mate crested in volume as the large beast rolled toward the river. The Cerean took in the ash touched air and passed the space toward Wally’s presumed mate.

 

Wally cast a weather eye toward Roene as he moved, but the Cerean assured Wally that he was only there to help. It may not have made a difference to the large creature that had lost faith in the people of the galaxy, but Roene was going to assume Wally would not kill him. Hope was all he had for the moment. The Jedi Knight made his way through the glade and over to the besieged rancor and her pup. Other rancor stumbling through the glade were touched with a calming aura that hit the area as Roene’s hands touched the sick rancor’s hides. He felt, his energy webbing through the massive circulatory and nervous systems of both Rancor, an affliction that hit both rancor deep inside. A blackness, deep in their stomachs, spread throughout their body, destroying their filtering bio-systems, causing bile to spread and ravage their internal organs. Roene’s head felt heavy and clammy. He could feel his strength wane as he delved deeper into their condition. So much so, that he had to let up a few moments after touching them, realizing that he’d almost reached a point of overexertion.

 

But, he had a theory. The Cerean bowed gently to the rancor and made his way to the river. The water was murky and hard to look through, but it was clear enough to see something suspicious in the flow of its current. The Cerean dipped his walking stick in the deep river and immediately felt a burning shock run up the length of his stick and into his hands. The tip of the stick, blackened and smoldering, faded slightly before falling in ash to the ground.

 

Poison…

______ _____ _____

 

Wally bent down over the totem and prodded it with a large claw. The rancor’s beady eyes dug deep into Arleigh’s and he shared a moment from their past in the small vestiges of their connection.

 

• << Arleigh stopped, her heart full of indecision. There he was, standing before her, all that tied her to this old life. The Jedi was right of course, he didn't belong on some Jedi planet. He needed to grow free, free from whatever her life would become. She leaned forward and caressed his rock-like snout. Inviting a whimper from the beast. She put her hand between its wide-spaced eyes and whispered a soft chant.
   
  Ieerich Voster Hoenemhiem
   
  She kissed him again, and with a lonely howl, he was gone. Her thin shoulders sagged, and she leaned against the shuttle, willing back tears.
   
  ‘Lead on master Jedi…’ >>

 

When the vision was over, Wally touched a claw to Arleigh’s head and rubbed his rocky like snout on her head.

 

Thank you for coming…

[Arleigh Burke]

Tears streamed down Arleigh’s face like the alabaster fountains of Karth. The tears soaked her lab coat collar and turned it a ruddy brown from the streaked ash of her homeworld. She had both dreaded and yearned for this day and now that it was here it broke her heart. She had sent away the only friend that she had ever had all because a Jedi had asked her to. She should have stayed, had helped him grow, and…

 

Died like all her brothers and sisters in the massacre of a few months before. She looked to the cerean Jedi. “What can I do to help him?”

[Roene Givrah]

Roene’s words came quick and a little jumbled. His mind was fading from some measure of exhaustion and his thoughts came in like bursts of information.

 

“For the little one, his biological functions might be resilient enough to pull through. We need to find some way to neutralize the toxins in his body before they do too much damage. However, I’m afraid, Wally’s mate will not recover as easily. Her state is a lot worse than the pup. Rancor biology is a great deal different than your average animal and is a lot bigger. If you understand it like I do, then you can start on preparing a way to neutralize the toxins in the pup. The best we can do for Wally’s mate is ease her passing. In the meantime, I will formulate a way to purify this river. If we leave it like this, more people and more animals will suffer and die. They need a viable source of water.”

 

The Cerean set his walking stick aside, the ashy tip recovering from its dip in the fetid water. Roene fell to his knees by the side of the river and closed his eyes. A heavy, clammy, sheen of sweat stood all across the Cerean’s coned brow. His breaths were short and labored. His thoughts were clipped and short. Every moment the poisonous air closed in on them, he actively pushed it outward. Every moment the aggressive animals neared the glade, he actively encouraged them to seek food elsewhere. And, even now, doing what he could to conserve his power for the tasks ahead, Roene found his head drooping a little, the weight of his coned dome starting to prove a little too much.

 

Still… He had work to do.

 

Taking a grip of the sensation that threatened to overwhelm him, Roene pried the teeth apart and pushed past. He dipped his hands in the water and opened his body and mind to the flow.

 

Hammers and knives raked across the meaty parts of his palms. Lightning struck the tips of his fingers and like a hoard of angry ugnaughts chanting with vigorous zeal, Roene could hear high-pitched screeching coming from the water.

 

Shh… Let me know your pain. I am here now. I can help.

 

The sensations redoubled, barreling against the Cerean’s mental defenses and crashing against them. Roene attempted to let go - to allow his hands a break from the poisoned water - but the pounding fire burned at the fringe of his weary consciousness and knocked the remaining energy from his body.

 

The Cerean fell unconscious into the water and began to float downstream.

 

___

 

Wally rubbed his snout on Arleigh, mopping up some of the tears on her face. He touched a claw to her shoulder and whuffed a little in her face, before turning to look at his mate and child. Just as the Rancor turned, he found that the Cerean was nowhere to be found. The Rancor's face contorted in befuddlement and he grunted to himself.

[Arleigh Burke]

Arleigh drew the long stone knife from her belt and slowly approached Wally’s mate, she whispered an apology to her old friend and with a well trained plunge, it was over. Swift as sin. She cried with Wally a while, letting him lick the blood from her hands and together they said their goodbyes. She turned to see where the jedi might have been when...

 

Wait where did he go? Arleigh looked up and down the smoke filled mountainside her eyes searching the ground for fresh footprints and other signs of movement. She sighed as she started downstream from where it looked like he may have fallen in.

 

“What is up with Jedi Wally? Do you know?”

 

He did not. But together they tracked the jedi